A Time and a Place
by almathea
Summary: A woman from Tesla's past shows up at the Sanctuary. What does she want, and why is she so unhappy with him?
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: **This takes place some time after Animus, and probably before For King and Country (don't know since it hasn't aired yet). So what happened here was I wrote novel for NaNoWriMo, which involved a more historically based Nikola Tesla and a woman named Alice. They built a time machine, took out Jack the Ripper, all kinds of fun stuff. So then I wondered what would happen if I put her and her time machine into the Sanctuary world with a once-vampire Tesla. And here's how things went. I'm really just making this up as I go, so I don't know when I'll update it.

Also, this is my first Sanctuary fic. A bit of an experiment, to say the least.

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing, sadly. Well, except Alice. She's all mine.

**Chapter One: A Hell of a Hello**

Helen walked into the library, where Tesla still stood staring at the holographic globe. "Nikola, there's someone here looking for you," she said.

"Who?" he asked without turning around.

A young woman with a worn satchel over her shoulder stepped through the doorway. "Hello, Nikola."

Tesla had heard that voice before, a long time ago. He spun around to face the woman. "Alice Hartdegan. It's been what, a hundred years?"

"A hundred and twenty," Alice replied.

Helen looked from one to the other. "Wait, who are you?" she asked Alice.

Alice turned to Helen. "You shouldn't be so surprised. I've heard all about you, Dr. Magnus. While I have not lived as long as you have, I know the world you come from." She cast Tesla a sideways glance. "Nikola here helped me build my time machine in 1890."

Tesla smirked as he remembered. "Ah yes, that was a fun project."

"You have a time machine?" Helen asked.

"And I had grand plans for it," Tesla broke in. "But once she was done using me for my intellect, the little minx ran off with it," he said, casting a glare at Alice.

Alice haughtily regarded Tesla. "You know, I actually cared about you. Well, up until you tried to steal my time machine to resurrect your dying race."

"I still might," Tesla replied.

"Which is exactly why I didn't bring it with me," Alice countered. "I'd shoot you if I thought it'd do any good. I might anyway, just on principle."

"I would rather you didn't," Tesla said, trying to mask an obnoxious bit of fear that was attempting to rear its ugly head.

"I'm sure you would," Alice replied, pulling a pistol from her bag, aiming it at Tesla and firing.

"What the hell are you doing?" Helen demanded, wresting the gun from Alice's hands.

"What? He—" Alice began, turning to gesture at Tesla. She stopped when she saw him lying on the floor, eyes squinted shut, right hand clutching his profusely bleeding left shoulder. "Oh my God," Alice said, holding a hand over her mouth. "Clearly I've missed something."

Helen had already moved beside Tesla and was kneeling beside him. "Nikola, let me see," she said softly but forcefully. Tesla relaxed his right arm enough so that Helen could move it out of the way to inspect the damage. She looked up at Alice, who still stood stunned. "Just what in the bloody hell were you thinking?"

Alice stepped forward and knelt down on the other side of Tesla. "Well, last I checked, he was a vampire and was virtually impervious to injury."

"So you shot me?" Tesla asked through clenched teeth as he opened his eyes and lifting his head to look at Alice.

"Well, it was on principle!" Alice defended. "I wouldn't have done it if I'd thought it would actually hurt you."

"Well, how considerate of you," Tesla said, closing his eyes and laying his head back on the floor.

"That's enough out of both of you," Helen scolded. She turned back to Tesla. "We need to get you down to the infirmary. Can you walk?"

Tesla looked up at her with a weak smirk. "For you, my dear Helen, I can do anything."

Helen rolled her eyes. "Well, come on then." She helped Tesla into a sitting position, and he replaced his right hand over his shoulder. He leaned forward and took a few breaths. He looked up at Helen.

"Funny, I don't remember it hurting this much when you shot me in Rome," he said, slowly getting to his feet. He wavered slightly and Helen placed her hand on his back. "Am I supposed to feel this light-headed?" he asked.

"It's called being human," Helen replied, steering him towards the door.

Tesla grimaced. "Must you be so insulting?"

Helen smiled slightly as she directed the staggering Tesla to the infirmary. Alice followed nervously behind them. When they reached the infirmary, Alice stood quietly outside, while Helen sat Tesla down on a bed. She picked up a piece of gauze and directed Tesla to hold it against his shoulder. Then she moved to unbutton his shirt.

"Why Helen…" Tesla began with his trademark grin.

"Shut up, Nikola," Helen interrupted, suppressing a smile. She took the gauze from him and slid his shirt off of his shoulder. She examined the wound and reached for a pair of forceps. "You may want to lie down," she told him.

"Why?" he asked. "Do you have something in mind?"

"As a matter of fact, I do," Helen replied. She steadied his shoulder with one hand, and using the forceps in the other, went to extract the bullet.

"Agh!" Tesla shouted, jerking back away from her. "That is not what I was hoping for!"

Helen gave him a slight smile. "Then lie down." She pushed his good shoulder until he was lying on the bed. "Now hold still."

He obliged and she carefully pulled the bullet out of his shoulder, with him complaining all the while. She bandaged the wound and set her tools down. "You can be such a baby, Nikola," she said as she walked towards the door. She opened it and beckoned Alice in. "All right, you need to sort out whatever you came here for," Helen told her.

"Unless you came all this way just to shoot me," Tesla said, sitting up on the bed.

"Actually, I needed your help," Alice said.

"Well, you have the worst possible way of asking for it," Tesla replied.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Warning: The science contained in this chapter is largely made up!**

I'm a historian, not a physicist, or a geologist, or anything useful like that.

Sorry, it's kind of a short exposition-y chapter, but I'm starting on chapter three right now, so hopefully we'll have some more action going on soon.

**Disclaimer:** Still don't own anything but Alice. You know, if that novel ever gets published, this will be a crossover fic… how odd.

**Chapter Two: Set Your Alarm for Volcano Day**

"So what is it that you need help with?" Tesla asked, sitting down in an armchair, holding his left arm against his chest. Helen had repeatedly tried to put it in a sling, but Tesla kept removing it, saying it clashed with his wardrobe.

"The power source, on the time machine. You remember it, yes?" Alice said.

"I designed it," Tesla replied.

"Yes, I know," Alice said. "It's been having problems. I was stuck in 1969 for a week until I could jury-rig it enough to make it here. And let me tell you, that is not a fun place to be."

"Speaking of which," Helen interrupted. "How did you know where and when to come?"

"I've been to the future," Alice explained. "The past is easy. Or is this the present? I mean, technically, this is my future, so I get a little confused…"

"That power source was perfect!" Tesla declared. "What have you been doing to it?"

"I didn't do anything!" Alice insisted. "It was working just fine until maybe a month ago. And when I say month, I mean from my point of view. I was in 2012 for a few days, did a weekend in 1632—that one was probably a mistake on my part—then I spent a few weeks lounging in the French Riviera in 1790—"

"Well, you must have done _something_ to it," Tesla said, interrupting. "It wouldn't just stop working."

"I may have… lingered a little too long during a volcanic eruption," Alice said timidly.

Tesla tilted his head and looked at her. "When?"

"79 AD?" Alice said nervously.

Tesla rubbed his right hand over his eyes. "Yes, that would probably do it."

"But you can fix it, right?" Alice said. "Because if not, you're going to be stuck with me for quite a long time."

Tesla looked up suddenly. "No, no, I can fix it."

"Just what is this power source?" Helen asked.

Tesla eyes lit up excitedly. "It's quite brilliant really. It derived power from the earth's electromagnetic field, so it would work virtually anywhere on earth. Except," he said, casting a dark look at Alice, "if you try to use it during a massive volcanic eruption. All of that molten rock going everywhere and the ground shaking, well, the device has trouble tracking the field. If it isn't recalibrated, it starts doing unpredictable things. It might work a few more times, but eventually, the difference between where the field is and where the device thinks it should be makes the whole thing unstable." He regarded Alice for a moment. "It's actually amazing that you managed to make it here."

"Actually," Alice began, "I was aiming for two weeks ago, and on the lawn here. I wound up five miles away on the wrong day. I had to use public transportation, and the people of this century are quite disgusting." She shuddered. "I miss the good old days, when it was improper to touch random strangers." She looked from Tesla to Helen. "See, unlike you two, who got to ease into the changing times, I haven't been hanging around for the last hundred years. I had this 21st Century impropriety thrust upon me."

"You've managed to blend in rather well," Helen observed, indicating Alice's attire.

Alice glanced down at her clothes. She wore black pants and boots, a grey blouse, and a black duster. "Yes, well, I've found that this is pretty universal. Occasionally I have to keep my coat closed to keep from being stoned for dressing too much like a man, but it works all right."

"So where exactly _is_ the time machine?" Tesla interrupted. "The sooner you're on your way, the better."

"Aw, just when we were starting to be friends again," Alice said with mostly mock sadness.

"You shot me," Tesla said accusingly.

"And I feel terrible about that," Alice replied. "I didn't really expect you to one day just stop being a vampire. I didn't even know that was possible."

"Yes, well, it's depressing enough as it is, I don't need you rubbing it in," Tesla responded. "So, the time machine?"

"There's a bit of a park on the corner of 12th and Lunceford," Alice said finally.

"I can have someone go pick it up," Helen said. "What does it look like?"

Alice smiled slightly. "I think you'll know it when you see it."


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: **So this is obviously ignoring the events of For King and Country, which was _awesome!_ But I digress. Here's another kind of short chapter. It felt like it should end here, so I let it. But not to worry, there will more soon enough. If anyone's curious, today's chapter title comes from the Sonata Arctica song 'Caleb.'

**Disclaimer:** I own Alice, and not a whole lot else.

**Chapter Three: Lost One More Way Back Home**

The time machine was a brass pedestal covered in dials and levers, which sat on top of a disc-like circular base about three feet in diameter. It sat in the middle of the lab, propped up on blocks to allow easier access to the power source in the base of the pedestal. Tesla stood beside it, disconnecting copper wires and dismantling the device with his right hand.

"And you were so young and beautiful," he said quietly.

"What?" Alice asked, standing behind him.

"Oh, not you. This," Tesla replied, pointing to the power source. He went back to tinkering for a moment. "You didn't happen to hit this with a sledgehammer, did you?" he asked without looking back at her.

"No," Alice replied flatly. "I may have… kicked it a few times."

"You poor thing," Tesla said to the device. He turned back to Alice. "It's no wonder it stopped working. You've been abusing it for how long now?"

Alice squinted, thinking. "A year? Maybe two. It's hard to keep track of time when I don't stay in one place and time for very long."

"Well, it's about to get a lot easier," Tesla replied. "Welcome to 2010. You'll be staying a while." He turned back the time machine.

Alice rushed over to stand right beside him. "What? You mean you can't fix it? I'm stuck here?"

"Of course I can fix it," Tesla said. "Genius, remember? It's more of a matter of _if_ I'll fix it."

"Why wouldn't you?" Alice demanded. "I thought you wanted to get rid of me."

"Yes, but it would almost be worth it just to see you so uncomfortable," Tesla replied with a grin.

"Are you two being civil?" Helen asked, entering the lab. She looked from Tesla's smirk to Alice's horrified look. "I assume not."

"He's trying to trap me in this godforsaken time period!" Alice declared.

"The poor child doesn't sit still well," Tesla said, still grinning, and turning back to the machine.

"I am not a child!" Alice protested. "I'm twenty… seven? Twenty eight?"

"Yes, but by comparison," Tesla said gesturing between himself and Helen, "you're barely a toddler. Maybe you need a nap."

Alice's jaw dropped, and she stood a moment in stunned fury. "Screw you, Tesla!" she declared finally and stormed out of the lab.

"Do you need to be so hard on her?" Helen asked.

"No," Tesla replied. "But it's more fun that way." At Helen's disapproving look, he sighed. "This machine could have been the key to bringing back the greatest race of abnormals that ever lived. And she _knew_ that's what I would use it for, but still she led me along with her promises of grand adventures in time, all the while making me believe that I would get something for my troubles. One trip, that's all I would have needed. But she wouldn't even give me that."

"So you're going to condemn her to being trapped out of her time?" Helen asked.

Tesla looked straight at her. "We're all out of our time, Helen." He turned back to the time machine. "Besides, it's not like she would go back to 1890 anyway. She wants to go everywhere so she doesn't have to stay anywhere."

"How do you know?" Helen asked. "You haven't exactly had a proper conversation since she got here."

"She was the same way in 1890. That's why she wanted to build this thing in the first place," Tesla replied, pulling the power source completely free of the machine. "What has she done to you?" he asked it.

Helen resignedly shook her head and walked out of the lab. Once her back was turned, Tesla looked up and silently watched her leave.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: **Today's chapter title comes from Breaking Benjamin's 'Crawl.' We're moving the plot forward a wee bit, and being unreasonably mean to poor Nikola. I do it out of love, I swear.

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing but Alice. Oh, and that wrench there. No, that's a lie. I don't even have a wrench. I have a sonic screwdriver, if that helps…

**Chapter Four: Show Me Where it Hurts and I Will Make it Worse**

Helen found Alice in a window seat in one of the upstairs hallways. The younger woman sat with her knees pulled up to her chest, with her arms wrapped around them as she gazed blankly out the window.

"Hello," Helen said softly as she approached.

Alice looked up and away from the window. "Oh, hey."

"You seem to have adapted well to modern speech," Helen observed.

Alice nodded absently. "I picked things up here and there. It's easier to blend in when you don't speak archaic English."

Helen decided to jump right in with what she wanted to know. "Why don't you want to go home?"

Alice shrugged. "There's nothing for me there. My parents are both gone. The scientific community laughed at my theories. I see no reason to go back there."

"So where will you go?" Helen asked.

Alice looked back out the window. "Around. I don't like to stay in one place for too long." She pushed her insecurities down behind her snarky façade and turned back to Helen. "So what happened to Nikola? I mean, with the whole vampire thing."

Helen considered how to explain. "There was an incident, and he… de-vamped himself."

The corners of Alice's mouth twitched into a slight smile. "How on earth did he manage that?"

Helen shook her head. "It's a long story."

Alice looked down at her knees. "So I imagine he's not doing so well with the whole mortality thing."

Helen's expression answered for her. Alice nodded slightly and abruptly stood and strode off down the hallway.

Tesla looked up at the sound of boots walking into the lab. When he saw Alice approaching, he looked back at what he was doing. He didn't look up when she stopped, standing across the table from him.

"How's it coming?" she asked.

"I've had to largely rebuild the power source," Tesla replied, still focused on his work. "It should be up and running in an hour or two."

"That's… fast," Alice said, taken aback.

"Genius," Tesla said, half looking up.

"Right," Alice said, picking up a wrench off of the table. "Even with one arm," she commented, tossing the wrench into the air so that it spun once before she caught it. She went to toss it again, higher, but as it reached its apex, it veered off course towards Tesla, colliding with his wounded left shoulder and sticking there.

Tesla dropped the part he was holding on the table, leaning forward on his right hand. His eyes squinted shut as he finally mustered a strained, "Ow."

Alice stared at him a moment in confusion before pointing accusingly at the wrench. "You're magnetic!"

"Yes," he replied flatly, not moving from his hunched over position. "That's a very…" he gritted his teeth, "astute observation." He took a deep breath and opened his eyes, staring determinedly down at the table in front of him.

Alice leaned across the table and firmly but gently pulled the wrench away from him, setting it back on the table. "Sorry," she said quietly.

"For hitting me with a wrench, or for shooting me in the first place?" Tesla asked.

"Both," she replied. She watched Tesla for a minute. "Are you okay?"

"Um…" Tesla said uncertainly. He squinted again and cast a glance at a dark spot on his already dark shirt. He pressed his right hand against his shoulder, and pulled it away with blood on his fingers. "No, not really. I think I should..." He grabbed at the edge of the table to slow his descent as he dropped to the floor, landing in a sitting position, leaning against the heavy leg of the table.

Alice knelt down in front of him. "Jesus, Nikola."

He looked at her with a slight smile. "It might be more than an hour."

She rose quickly to her feet. "I'll find Dr. Magnus," she said, hurrying for the door. She didn't have to go far, as she was met by Helen in the doorway. "We've, uh, had a bit of an incident," Alice said, gesturing back toward the table.

Helen crossed the room and knelt next to Tesla. "Can't you two play nice?" she asked. "What happened?"

"I… um, well, see, I had this wrench, and then… he's magnetic!" Alice stuttered out.

"Hello, Helen," Tesla said with a weary smirk.

"It looks like you've lost quite a bit of blood," Helen said, reaching out and unbuttoning his shirt to better assess the damage.

"It's not the setting I would have picked, but I can work with this," Tesla said, wiping the blood off of his right hand and reaching out and grazing his fingers across Helen's cheek.

"Nikola," she said in a warning tone, but he ignored her and leaned forward. When he was mere inches from her, his body went limp and he dropped heavily into her lap.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N:** Today's chapter title is from Linkin Park's 'Burning in the skies.' Yes, I use a lot of song lyrics. There are some within the chapter, and since they're so close to the top, I'll cite them here.

The sentence Nikola says in Serbian is a line from Night Shift's song 'Nikada,' and it means, "I will never admit to myself that you're the only one I wanted, it kills me," or something to that effect. Listen to it on YouTube or whatever. It's very good.

**Disclaimer:** I still just own my time travelling girl.

**Chapter Five: I'm Losing What I Don't Deserve**

When Tesla awoke, he was lying in a bed in the infirmary. His mind felt sluggish and the pain in his shoulder had faded into a dull ache. He surveyed the room through half-open eyes. Helen stood with her back to him, looking at something on a table in front of her.

"_Nikada neću priznati sebi da si ta jedina koju hteo sam, to me ubija_," Tesla muttered.

Helen spun around. "What?"

"Nothing," Tesla replied, closing his eyes for moment. "Did I miss anything interesting?" he asked, looking at her again.

"Like me taking your clothes off while you were unconscious?" Helen asked innocently.

Tesla looked down. He was indeed no longer wearing his own clothes, but was dressed in a loose white shirt. He gave Helen a disappointed look. "At least tell me it was good."

Helen simply smiled at sat down on the edge of the bed. "How are you feeling?"

He smirked as he decided how to answer. "Not so much violated… more left out."

"Well, you should try to stay awake next time," Helen replied without missing a beat.

"Care to give an encore?" Tesla asked, grinning.

Helen smiled flirtatiously, leaning down until her face was inches from Tesla's. "No," she said, sitting back up and standing. "I hope I can trust you to stay here," she said as she was leaving the room. "I don't need you injuring yourself further."

"Of course," Tesla replied. The moment Helen was out of sight, Tesla sat up and looked around for his clothes. If Helen wasn't going to fawn over him, there wasn't really any point in staying in the infirmary when he had work to do. He located his clothes on a nearby chair. The shirt had a massive bloodstain on it, but it would do for the moment. Once dressed, he snuck out of the infirmary and upstairs to the room where he had been staying. Clad in a clean, blood-free shirt, he leaned his head out of the doorway and looked both ways down the hall. Seeing no one, he headed in the direction of the lab, avoiding any approaching footsteps by dodging into alcoves and empty rooms.

He knew that the whole Sanctuary was equipped with security cameras, and there was no way he would get where he was going completely unnoticed. But that didn't mean he wasn't going to try. He was within sight of the lab, when the protégé William came on the intercom.

"Magnus, your… patient seems to have left the infirmary."

"Damn it!" Tesla shouted at the ceiling.

Then Tiny Tim had to put his two cents in. "I've got him on the security camera outside the lab."

"I can hear you, you know!" Tesla shouted.

Helen appeared at the end of the hall. "I thought I told you to stay put."

"Actually, you said you hoped I'd stay there," Tesla pointed out.

"Semantics, Nikola!" Helen said glaring at him. "I can't have you wandering around, getting into trouble, and bleeding to death!"

Tesla pointed to the door that was his goal. "I'll be here, not wandering around. You can even keep an eye on me if you like." He started walking towards the door. "I have a time machine to fix."

Helen scowled and shook her head, but made no move to stop him. He entered the lab where he found Alice sitting on a stool, staring at the time machine.

"I think she's a bit mad at you," Alice said flatly.

Tesla headed straight for the table where he had been working. "She's been a bit mad at me for over a hundred years. At this point I'd be surprised if she wasn't."

"So are you… okay?" Alice asked, gesturing vaguely at his shoulder.

"I'm fine," Tesla replied. "I just need to finish this."

"You know, I really appreciate you helping me out, after... everything," Alice said.

"You mean after you shot me?" Tesla asked without looking up.

"That, and everything in New York in 1890," Alice said.

"I can't say I wouldn't have done the same," Tesla replied.

An uneasy silence fell over the room for nearly an hour, before Tesla turned to Alice, triumphantly holding up the power source in his right hand.

"Is it finished?" she asked.

"No, I just thought I'd show it off a bit. Of course it's finished," Tesla replied. He turned to the time machine and placed the power source back in the pedestal, reconnecting wires as he went. Finally, he made a few adjustments and stepped back with a nod. "There. You can be on your way."

Using a pulley system, they moved it off of the blocks and down onto the floor. Alice ran a hand over the controls, lightly caressing the dials with her fingertips. There was nothing she would rather do than leave this place behind, to strike off for new times and places. She stepped away from the machine.

"You should probably tell Helen you're leaving," Tesla said. "She likes to know who's coming and going."

Alice looked him straight in the eye. "I'm not going anywhere yet."

Tesla narrowed his eyes at her. "Why not?"

"Because I owe you. Not just for fixing it, but for everything before," she said. "You wanted one trip, and I denied you that then. Not anymore."

"Wait," Tesla said. "You're going to let me use your time machine?"

Alice nodded. "Maybe you can find a cure for your mortality."


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: ** I own only what is mine. Which is relatively little.

**Chapter Six: A Chance in Hell**

Tesla strode into Helen's office. "If you want to take my clothes off again, you better do it now. I may not be coming back."

Helen looked at him with complete bewilderment. "What?"

He walked around her desk until he stood beside where she sat. "I'm serious, Helen. This is the last chance we could ever have," he said with his typical smirk.

She stood and narrowed her eyes at him. "What… Where are you going?"

"Not so much where as when," Tesla replied.

"The time machine," Helen said, still looking solidly at him. Suddenly her eyes widened. "No. You're not… You're going to get vampire blood from the source aren't you?"

Tesla grinned. "Wish me luck." Before Helen could respond, he grabbed her by the shoulders and kissed her. Then he turned and left the office.

Helen stood shocked for a moment before hurrying to follow him. "Nikola, wait," she called after him.

Tesla rushed into the lab, where Alice stood waiting by the time machine.

"Time to go," he said.

Alice held out a small black bag. "Here's all the stuff you asked for. Are you sure you don't want me to come with you? I mean, I have a lot more experience with the machine."

Tesla took the bag and shook his head. "Not a good idea. You'd look like a tasty snack to a bunch of vampires."

"So would you," Alice said. "Or have you forgotten that you're human now?"

Tesla grimaced at the word. "I'm willing to take that chance. Besides, I've still got traces of the source blood. Maybe they're recognize me as family."

"And what if you don't make it back?" Alice asked. "Not to sound selfish, but I'd be stuck here."

Tesla grabbed a piece of paper off of the table and scribbled something on it. "Provided the time machine withstands the ravages of time, this is where it will be," he said, pressing the paper into Alice's hand. Then he stepped up to the machine, checked that the dials where set properly, and pulled the lever.

When Helen burst into the room a moment later, she found Alice alone, looking at the scrap of paper in her hand.

"How could you let him do it?" Helen demanded.

The younger woman looked up at her. "I've owed him this for a hundred and twenty years. So now I guess we're even." She looked back down at the piece of paper.

"What's that?" Helen asked.

"It's where we'll find the time machine if he doesn't come back," Alice said, holding the paper out to Helen.

She took the paper and read the single word scrawled upon it. "Dear God."

_Bhalasaam._

**A/N:** Very short chapter, I know, which is why I'm uploading this one along with the next one. I'm not that mean.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N:** More song lyric titles… This one comes from Night Shift's 'Ranjena,' and reputedly means, "Better than dead forever." Anyway, now we see Nikola's adventures in time. Very exciting, yes?

**Disclaimer:** I own only what I created, which is only mentioned in one sentence in this chapter.

**Chapter S****even: Bolje Nego Mrtva Zauvek**

Tesla stood on a wooded hillside. He had purposely aimed the time machine a fair distance from the city. He didn't want it being discovered and potentially destroyed. He placed the small case he had brought with him into his pocket and walked through the woods to the vampire city that he had only ever seen in ruins. He stepped out of the trees at the top of a small cliff, and the grand city of Bhalasaam stretched out before him. Vampires moved around the city, seemingly unaware of his presence, so he crept down the hillside.

His plan was simple. Procure a sample of vampire blood and get back to the time machine. The odds of said plan going smoothly were slim. Tesla approached the city and walked alongside one of the buildings. He rounded a corner and met with four unhappy looking vampires. They stopped when they saw him.

"Who are you?" one of them asked.

"Just a humble admirer of your great kind," Tesla replied with a cocky grin.

Another vampire quickly moved around Tesla, grabbing him by the shoulders. Tesla winced as he squeezed his wounded shoulder.

"You're human," the vampire behind him said.

"Well, not entirely," Tesla argued, causing the vampire to squeeze his shoulder harder. Led by the other three, the one behind him dragged him into the building he had been walking around, throwing him down onto the floor. He sat hunched over on the floor, clutching his shoulder. It was bleeding again, and in a city full of vampires, that couldn't be a good thing. He took a few deep breaths and got to his feet, looking up to face his captors.

All Tesla saw was a blur of claws as they sliced across his chest, knocking him to the floor again. The vampire who had first spoken licked the blood off of his claws.

"Interesting," he said. "You don't taste human."

"Yes," Tesla said, lifting himself into a sitting position. "That's what I said." He examined the gashes on his chest. "Was that really necessary?"

"Where did you come from?" the vampire asked.

"Oh, around," Tesla replied, attempting nonchalance despite the stinging pain of the gashes. He surveyed the room, looking for anything that could aid him. He spotted a large metal chandelier hanging from the ceiling. He looked casually back down at the vampires. "I don't suppose any of you are going to cooperate while try to steal some of your blood." The expressions of the vampires indicated a strong negative. "No, I didn't think so," Tesla said, gesturing up to the chandelier and magnetically pulling it down on top of the vampires. Two of them dropped to the floor, but the other two were only momentarily stunned. Tesla levitated the chandelier off of the floor and threw it sideways into them. The metal arms impaled the two vampires and stuck into the wall behind them.

"You two just… stay there," Tesla said as they began trying to free themselves. Quickly, he went and knelt by one of the unconscious vampires on the floor. He took the black case from his pocket and pulled a few things out of it, setting them on the floor. He took one of them, a syringe with a hypodermic needle, and filled it with a sample of the vampire's blood. He went to put the syringe back in the case when the vampire's eyes shot open.

Tesla dropped the syringe and it rolled several feet across the floor. The vampire grabbed Tesla's wounded shoulder with one hand. The other hand sprouted claws, which he drove into Tesla's stomach. Tesla inhaled sharply and grasped desperately for the other item he had set on the floor. He grabbed a syringe filled with a fluid and jabbed it into the vampire's chest, releasing the powerful sedative contained within it. The vampire's eyes closed again, and his arms went limp. Tesla took hold of the vampire's wrist, pulling the claws free. He leaned forward on his right hand, desperately searching the floor for the syringe of vampire blood. He spotted it five feet towards the door, and holding his left hand against his stomach, Tesla stumbled towards it, picking it up and heading for the door.

He looked out the door, and seeing no one in the immediate vicinity, he started out around the corner, heading back up the hill the same way he'd come down. By the time that the time machine came into view, his vision was starting to blur. He set the blood sample on a flat spot on the controls, and adjusted the dials with shaking bloody hands. Finally, he pulled down the lever.

Helen and Alice had been staring at a blank spot in the center of the lab for over an hour, when the time machine suddenly reappeared. Tesla stood facing away from them, hunched over the controls. He turned and took a step towards Helen, but faltered and dropped to his knees. Helen stepped forward and caught him before he hit the floor.

Tesla looked up at her blearily. "I don't think they liked me much," he said just before he passed out.


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: **Today's chapter title: Three Days Grace's 'Time of Dying.' Well, that sounds ominous, doesn't it? It's a rather short little chapter, but I'm working on the next one already. It will probably be up tomorrow. Hopefully. I'll try really hard.

**Disclaimer: **I've said it seven times already. You know what I mean.

**Chapter Eight: On This Bed I Lay, Losing Everything**

Tesla had been unconscious for three days. After the first two, Helen had, out of sheer compulsion, done what she had first done over a century before. She had sworn that she never would again, after what they had done to Ashley. She was using the source blood.

She asked herself why, but she couldn't admit the real answer to herself. She told herself it was out of the need to do _something_, anything constructive. And that was what she told anyone who asked.

Alice's voice came over the intercom. "How does this… oh. Uh, Dr. Magnus, your presence is… requested in the infirmary."

"Requested?" Helen said to herself. She set down what she was working on and hurried out of the lab. When she walked into the infirmary, the first thing she noticed was Alice sitting on one of the empty beds. Then Helen's eyes went to who she was talking to. "Nikola," she said with mild surprise.

Tesla attempted his usual grin, but it seemed much more worn out than normal.

Alice rose and turned towards the door. "I'll leave you two…" she said, trailing off as she left.

"I would have thought you'd be happier to see me," Tesla said. "I'm told I've been out a while."

"No, it's not that," Helen said. "It's just, I'm more surprised."

"What, because of this?" he asked, indicated the heavy bandages under his shirt. "This is nothing. I'll be fine."

Helen swallowed and looked at the floor.

"Or not?" Tesla asked uncertainly.

Helen sat down on the edge of the bed and took his hand in both of hers.

"Helen?" Tesla asked, beginning to look concerned.

"I'm so sorry," she said quietly.

His eyes drifted from her and stared into empty space. "I can't… I don't…" He looked back at her. "You can't just let me die like this!"

Helen closed her eyes for a moment before she answered. "I've done everything I can." She tried to keep her voice even. "There is too much internal damage. I managed to slow the hemorrhaging, but I can't stop it completely."

"So how long before I bleed to death?" Tesla asked, uncharacteristically quiet.

Helen looked down to where she still held his hand. "A few days, maybe more."

"And you're just carrying on, business as usual, while I die here?" Tesla demanded.

Helen stood abruptly and took a step back from him. "I would have thought you'd know me better than that," she said, turning and leaving the room.

Halfway back to the lab, she had to stop and wipe away the tears blurring her vision. Taking a deep breath, she continued on her way. She knew what she had to do, and she knew why she was doing it.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N:** Well, this was an intense chapter to write. Today's title is from 'Vampire Heart' by HIM. Honestly that whole song is this chapter.

**Disclaimer:** It's not mine, except that which is.

**Chapter Nine: Scorching the Blood in My Vampire Heart **

Helen stepped back from the lab table. She had done it. It had taken her days, but she had developed a serum from the vampire blood that should have the desired effect, and not a moment too soon. There was no way of knowing exactly how much time Tesla had left, but Helen knew it couldn't be long. She loaded a syringe with the serum and headed for the infirmary.

She once again found Alice sitting on an empty bed. The young woman had been hesitant to leave, even thought she now had a working time machine at her disposal. She had often kept watch while Helen was busy working with the vampire blood. Tesla was unconscious, and paler than even a Hollywood vampire should be.

"You show a lot of concern for a man you shot," Helen observed.

Alice looked up at her. "Yes well, things have changed a bit. When I shot him, I didn't think he could actually die."

The two were interrupted as the even beeping of the monitor became irregular, then dropped to the constant tone of a flatline. Helen set the syringe she carried down on the side table and jumped into action.

"Bring me the defibrillator," she said to Alice.

"The what?" Alice asked, looking helpless.

"That!" Helen said, pointing at the cart. "Bring it over here."

"What are you going to do?" Alice asked.

"I'm going to restart his heart," Helen replied, quickly prepping the machine.

"Not to sound heartless, but why?" Alice asked. "What good is that going to do? I mean, what else can you do?"

Helen picked up the syringe and held it in the air momentarily. "I can save his life."

Alice looked at the serum. "You finished it."

"And I intend to use it," Helen replied. She picked up the paddles and moved them into position. "Charge to 200."

"I, uh," Alice stuttered.

"Second button," Helen said, and Alice did as she asked. "Clear!" Helen shouted as she pressed the button. The monitor still registered nothing.

"300," Helen instructed, and they repeated the process. The monitor stuttered and registered a pulse. "Oh, thank God," Helen said, setting the paddles back on the cart.

Tesla's eyes half opened, then started to slide closed again. Helen leaned over him, saying, "Nikola, stay with me."

His eyes opened again and he blinked at her. "Why?" His eyes unfocused and tried to close.

"No, Nikola, I need you to stay with me," Helen said.

"Took you long enough to realize that," he replied sleepily.

Helen rolled her eyes. "You really are incorrigible," she said, and then held up the syringe in front of him.

Tesla squinted at it. "Is that…?" He looked at Helen and gave her a weak grin. "That's what you've been doing?"

"Yes, and we mustn't waste any more time," she said, preparing to inject the serum into his arm. "Are you sure you want to do this?"

Tesla smiled. "What the worst that could happen?"

"True enough," Helen said, pushing the needle through the skin and pressing the plunger down. The moment she removed the needle, Tesla inhaled sharply and grabbed Helen's hand. The monitor began beeping quickly and erratically. Tesla's eyes rolled back in his head and the monitor fell back into its monotone death knell.

"Nikola!" Helen shouted. She leaned over him but was unsure what to do. There was nothing left that she could do, she had been too late. She reached over and turned off the monitor, then sat down heavily on the edge of the bed.

Behind her, Alice stood with her hands over her mouth, whispering, "Oh God, oh god."

Suddenly, Tesla gasped and his eyes shot open, the irises turned black. Both women jumped in surprise. Tesla spoke, showing vampire fangs. "Well. That was different." He shook his head and reverted to his human appearance.

Helen put a hand on either side of his face, leaned down and kissed him. His trademark grin returned.

"Now, what did I do to finally deserve that?" he asked.

"You're not dead," Helen replied with a relieved sigh.

"I've been not dead for 154 years," Tesla said. "I'd say you owe me."

Helen tried to look stern but couldn't contain her smile. "Don't push your luck."

* * *

**A/N:** I hope you enjoyed it. I'm leaning towards doing an epilogue, just to tie up the loose ends and make it all pretty and presentable.


	10. Epilogue

**A/N:** So here's the wrap-up. Enjoy. The title comes from Shinedown's 'Carried Away.'

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Sanctuary, unfortunately. I do own Alice, such as she is.

**Epilogue: Steal the Rush From the Hands of Time**

Two days later, Alice announced that she felt she had worn out her welcome and was taking off again through time. She stood by her machine, talking to Helen and Tesla.

"Where will you go?" Helen asked.

Alice shrugged. "Oh, around. There are still so many places I haven't been. Maybe I'll try the Fall of Constantinople, or maybe Sarajevo in June of 1914. I hear that was interesting. It's not often that history gets made by a Serbian," she said with a grin.

"Hey!" Tesla declared.

"Present company excluded, of course," Alice added, still grinning.

"Just because you can't shoot me anymore you're going to try insulting me?" Tesla asked.

"I could still shoot you," Alice said. "This is just far more effective."

"I see things between you two are back to normal," Helen observed.

"We can only cooperate for so long before we despise each other again," Tesla said.

"What's life without a little animosity?" Alice added with a smile. She began adjusting dials on the time machine's pedestal. "December 24th, 1863," she said, almost to herself.

"Christmas Eve?" Helen asked.

Alice nodded. "The year before I was born. I think I'll go say hello to my parents, back when they were young and happy." She set her hand on the lever. "Maybe I'll see you around some time."

"God, I hope not," Tesla said, then smirked slightly.

Alice gave them a little wave, then pulled the lever, disappearing into the past. Helen and Tesla stared at the empty spot for a moment before turning towards the door.

"I think I'm going to miss her, a little," Helen said as she walked out of the room.

Tesla paused and looked back at the empty space. "So will I," he said to himself, then followed Helen out the door.


End file.
